Head Hunting

In Tehelka, Ashis Nandy argues that the BJP’s dependence on Hindutva was bound to be problematic. Instead of allowing their fundamentalist elements and loony right-wing aligned groups some minor acknowledgement, the BJP instead allowed the fringes to antagonise the party’s larger support base. The “Indian genius” was to allow contradictions, he says, citing the early trends within the Congress Party as an example: many of its members initially belonged to both the Congress as well as other Hindu nationalist formations simultaneously.

Interestingly, he goes on to suggest that Hindutva is not as indigenous as its name seems to suggest; instead it was an attempt to indigenise an essentially European idea of the nation-state. Savarkar was perhaps looking to transform “a chaotic, diverse, anarchic society into an organized, masculine, western-style nation-state, something akin to Bismarck’s Germany”.

INDIAN YOUTH CONGRESS

INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS

What This Blog Does

We've heard the resounding verdict from the people of India and now it's time to look more closely at what the verdict was in favour of. What does the Congress party stand for and what does it aspire toward? Who better to delve into policy and politics than our own "unofficial" insiders! Congress loyalists (and analysts) Rajeev Gowda and Sanjay Jha are right on the job, bringing you their uncensored views and measured opinions.